Expectations and Compensation

As every lawyer knows, the three elements of a contract are “offer”, “acceptance” and “consideration” (compensation). A clear, common understanding of what the offer entails is key, and a reasonable level of mutual satisfaction with the compensation is important. This section brings together questions that address the three elements of the employment contract, starting with whether the original “offer” lived up to expectations.

Expectations and Compensation

5. Strongly Agree

4. Agree

3. Neither

2. Disagree

1. Strongly Disagree

Net Score top 2 - low 2

The actual job is close to what I expected when I was hired.

31.7%

48.3%

10.5%

7.4%

2.2%

70.4%

The expectations of the job are clearly defined.

29.9%

49.7%

11.4%

6.7%

2.3%

70.6%

My performance is evaluated fairly.

35.5%

49.7%

9.1%

4.6%

1.2%

79.3%

My compensation package is comparable to, or better than, other similar jobs in the community.

30.6%

46.2%

13.5%

7.3%

2.5%

67.0%

Category Averages:

31.9%

48.5%

11.1%

6.5%

2.0%

71.8%

Eighty percent of respondents indicated that they feel they knew what they were getting into when they were hired. Similarly high percentages indicated that their jobs are clearly defined and that their performance is fairly evaluated.

When respondents compare their compensation packages to others in the community, on the other hand, Net Score dips below the 70% level.

Interpretation

While good, the results of the first question leave room for improvement on the part of employers. Clear discussions, videos and realistic job previews (including having candidates do side-by-sides with existing agents, where this can be allowed) would act to increase the number of “strongly agree” responses for the first question, and also help with the second.

The positive responses to the question “my performance is evaluated fairly” indicates that employers of the respondents are doing well on this score. While we do not have statistically deep comparisons from the past, our impression is that employers have been improving over time, through use of more advanced scorecards and more frequent feedback to employees.

The response to the question on relative compensation, which scored the lowest Net Score of this group, is open to different interpretations. However, our consensus is that it represents a good result overall – better than expected.

Compensation

Impact:

· Agent Turnover

· Budget for Incentives

· Hiring and Promotion Processes

MyAgent Voicesblog posts are the result of research on over 5,000 agent surveys conducted in North America. - - Bruce Belfiore